Friday, October 12, 2018 10.46AM / OpEd By Ahmed
Olayinka Sule, CFA / @Alatenumo
Dear FT
Leaders, FT Columnist and Professor Summers,
I read with
great attention Professor Lawrence Summers opinion piece written in the 09
October 2018 edition of the Financial Times titled "I discovered the rest of America on my summer holiday."
In his article, Summers, an FT columnist and former US Treasury Secretary
stated that he embarked on a two-week holiday which involved driving across
parts of America. During his travel, he discovered parts of America that
he was not usually accustomed to. Professor Summers who is more used to
travelling on planes discovered that a vast part of the "country is
uninhabited"; he discovered that there were places that had no mobile
service; he discovered abandoned cafés, gas stations and hotels; he discovered
the remoteness of the concerns of the coastal people; he discovered for the
first time that "Many ranchers and native Americans wanted to see their
children educated," and he discovered "How profoundly
different ways of life are within the US."
What I find
amusing is it took Professor Summers 64 years after his birth, 48 years after
his admission to MIT, 36 years after he graduated with a PhD from Harvard, 25
years after he was Chief Economist of the World Bank, 19 years after he was
appointed US Treasury Secretary and 12 years after he became an FT columnist to
discover 99% of America. Ever since he penned his first FT column on 29 October
2006, Summers has written 214 articles over a 12-year period. Summers recent
discovery confirms my long-standing suspicion that FT columnists in general and
the FT in particular, live in an echo chamber.
Without a
doubt, Financial Times is one of the most influential newspapers in the world.
It has the attention of millions of readers including politicians, captains of
industry and think tanks. I have been an avid reader of the Financial Times for
the past sixteen years and have learnt a lot. However, I don't necessarily
agree with every word that proceeds out of the paper. I identify myself as a
black man of African heritage, which differs from the identity of the
quintessential FT Columnist. From time to time, I express my disagreement by
writing 'We see things differently' rejoinders to the writers. Over the years,
I have exchanged emails with some FT columnists and the dialogue suggests to me
that some of them live in a world that differs from the average folk on the
street. Professor Summers recent article is emblematic of this disconnect from
reality.
The
disconnection is partly due to the lack of diversity in colour, opinion and
experience at the FT. This lack of diversity can lead to a situation whereby
undercurrents’ happening in the real world goes unnoticed. It could also
explain why the absurdity of Professor Summers article escaped the editorial
process.
A look at the
images of the FT columnist below reveals the lack of diversity:
·
https://aboutus.ft.com/en-gb/contact-us/ft-journalists/
·
https://app.ft.com/index_page/columnists
Admittedly,
there are columnists of colour like Janan Ganesh, Rana Foroohar and Roula
Khalaf who write regularly for the FT, however, they are the notable exceptions
to the rule. I stand to be corrected, but my analysis revealed that of the 861
articles written by FT columnists since 1 January 2018, there was no article
written by a black columnist. When I broached this lack of diversity with one
of your esteemed columnist, I was informed that standards of intellectual
relevance apply. I refuse to believe that there is a paucity of black writers
capable of intellectual rigour. The lack of diversity of FT columnist plays out
in race-related articles. People within my community see the FT as a paper that
has little or no understanding of black issues.
We watch in
amusement as we see predominately white men use the pages of FT to argue to
millions of readers that - expunging slave-owners names erase our complex history; white self-interest is not the same as racism; black agitators are stifling free speech; the racism drama
in the NBA is more about money than moral; George Zimmerman’s shooting of
Trayvon Martin was not motivated by racism and Africa should nudge its population down. We scratch our heads when we see
white FT male writers argue against the pulling down of statues of
controversial dead white men like Cecil Rhodes as they keep silent when the
statues of controversial women of colour like Aung San Suu Kyi are removed.
Besides the
lack of FT columnist diversity, there is also a lack of diversity in the
leadership. Excluding the 2 non-executive members of the FT leadership who are
based in Japan, 11 out of 11 of the FT Exco are white (see below)
https://aboutus.ft.com/en-gb/leadership/
For the sake of
clarity, I am not suggesting that the FT is institutionally racist. I am only
bringing the lack of diversity to the FT leadership in the hope that something
would be done to address it. As a starter, the FT could consider expanding its
recruitment pool beyond the traditional places where it gets its columnists.
But we can't afford to compromise on standards you may argue. Agreed, but
standards of excellence are not the exclusive preserve of a race, region or
school. In addressing the diversity of colour, there might be a temptation to
bring in people who look brown, think white and see green. If you decide to
choose this path of least resistance, my advice is to address colour diversity
in conjunction with the diversity of experience and opinion.
In addition to
the lack of colour diversity, there is a lack of diversity in opinion. I
appreciate that FT's economic alignment is globalism and economic liberalism. I
also appreciate that the FT is an Anglophone publication owned by a Japanese
entity, published in London, for a global elite. However, this should not
preclude the FT from accommodating alternative viewpoints. When economic
nationalism and political socialism or communism is mentioned, it is usually as
disadvantages. Very often the FT's bias is plain for all to see. Terms like
'anti-establishment' and 'far-right' are used continuously to describe Italy's
Five Star Movement and Northern League respectfully. In describing leaders like
Jeremy Corbyn, the terms 'hard-left' and ‘populist’ comes in handy. In
addressing British politics, the paper rarely gives space to politicians who
advocate socialism. The voices of trade unionists are usually ignored while
officials from think tanks like Heritage Foundation and Policy Exchange (hardly
called right wing) are given space to discuss their ideas. A Google search
using the term 'Corbyn financial times' reveals hits like; "Jeremy Corbyn
casts doubt on his ability to lead Britain “; "Conservatives must tackle
social justice to beat Jeremy Corbyn"; "Jeremy Corbyn feeds the nasty
populism of the left “; "Jeremy Corbyn is failing Britain with inept
opposition." When describing Western educated neo-liberal finance
ministers based in developing countries, the term “respected” is used.
There is also a
lack of diversity in experience. As Professor Summers article demonstrates,
very often the life experiences of elites differ from those impacted by the
policies and writings of the elites. A review of the background of FT
Columnists reveals a sizeable number come from the so-called middle/
upper-class hierarchy. Could this class bias explain why FT columnists
often frown at policies which tend to favour the so-called working classes such
as increased public spending, nationalisation, redistributive tax policies,
workers representation on corporate boards and strict regulation of zero-sum
contracts and payday lenders?
Even though 1%
of the world controls 99% of the rest, the world is not limited to the interest
of the 1%. The FT should stick to its motto - Without Fear or Favour i.e.
Without fear of the 99% and without favour to the 1%. There needs to be a
revolution in the FT - not the communist type of revolution, but a revolution
that turns the mindset to see the world beyond a white middle class neo-liberal
tinted lens. I urge you to emulate Professor Summers by stepping out of your
echo chamber. Discover the rest of the world by visiting the ghettos, by
reading books by non-white writers, by embracing non-orthodox economic
theories, by building friendships with the poor, by engaging with the
uneducated and by expanding your recruitment pool.
It is probable
that all I have written will be dismissed as the ranting of an angry emotional
black communist who lacks intellectual precision and professional rigour.
That's your prerogative. However, the FT needs to change the way it sees the
world otherwise it could one day be dismissed as an elitist pink paper with no
relevance for the 21st century.
Selah.
Ahmed Olayinka
Sule, CFA
@Alatenumo
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